Ariel Tozman –
In March, Dan Fitzimmons and other residents of the Longboat community, west of the Distillery District, began noticing an unusual number of cars parked along both sides of their narrow residential street. Many of these vehicles displayed disabled parking permits, allowing them to park there at any time.
Fitzimmons, president of the Longboat Area Residents’ Association (LARA), said he watched the presumed construction workers leave their cars and walk toward ongoing condominium projects in the Distillery District.
He said vehicles with permits on their dashboards had been lining up on the north side of Longboat Avenue, making it “really difficult” for residents to access parking.
“This ended up turning the street into a one-way drive instead of a two-way drive. It also makes it really tough for emergency vehicles down there to access the street.”
“The biggest issue is when you’ve got [the parked cars] on either side,” said Judith Campbell, another local resident. It also makes it challenging “to see anything” when you’re driving up the street, she added. “I feel for [the construction workers] because, you know, they’re driving from elsewhere, and we all know how expensive parking is in Toronto…but it’s kind of like the consideration only goes one way.”
Asked about Longboat residents’ complaints over the alleged misuse of parking permits, the Toronto Police Service said the system is vulnerable to online scammers.
“Just as we were sitting and chatting, I decided to pull up Facebook Marketplace, and when [you] type in accessible parking permit, the first ad that comes up is a guy selling accessible parking permits,” said Scott Wylie, a parking enforcement supervisor in the Downtown East and head of the police’s disabled liaison section. “That’s how easy it is.”
Questioning anyone about their disability, whether they “look like they need a permit” or not, is discriminatory, he said. This violates TPS’s accessibility policy, the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).
“We cannot judge a disability by vision alone, so we can’t question people and nor would I want to. I’m not a doctor. I’m not going to assume I know what someone’s medical condition is or how it affects them in any way,” Wylie said.
Permit holders “could be in cahoots with an actual issuing practitioner,” Wylie added. Some doctors are allowed to charge for permits, he said, and physicians’ “names and numbers sometimes get passed around. While the provincial government covers the cost of getting or replacing an accessible permit, clinics can charge clients for completing the application form.
“Some residents have written to my office saying they believe people are misusing accessible parking permits in the area. Toronto police are investigating, so at this point these are only allegations,” MPP Chris Glover, who represents Spadina Fort-York, said in an email.
According to ServiceOntario, registered healthcare practitioners — including family doctors, chiropractors, physio and occupational therapists – can issue accessible parking permits to any individual whose mobility is limited because of a permanent or temporary disability. Depending on the nature of the disability, permits can be valid for five years and renewed without re-certification, or valid for up to five years and subject to change.
According to Statistics Canada data, almost 37 per cent of persons with disabilities experience barriers resulting from misconceptions or assumptions. As 27 per cent of Canadians aged 15 and over self-reported at least one disability, that’s almost four million people.
Retired lawyer David Lepofsky, chair of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance, said when people hear about handicapped parking, they might think of someone who requires a wheelchair. But those who experience anemia, stamina limits, vertigo or chronic pain issues are also entitled to permits.
“They should not be harassed, nor should they be penalized, for doing what they’re entitled to,” Lepofsky said. On the other hand, if someone is misusing an accessible permit to run their business, “that’s utterly appalling and should be the subject of very strict enforcement.”
In 2024, police seized 708 permits and charged 488 people with misuse. Wylie said his unit has investigated 900 permits this year, but the team consists of only four rotating officers policing more than 100,000 permitholders in Toronto. Permits can seem valid, he said, but who they’re issued to is another thing.
Toronto is the only city in Ontario where disability permit holders can park in ‘no parking’ areas, like some residential streets, with few exemptions. Other municipalities only grant permitholders access to designated handicapped spots, or overtime parking at certain hours.
Robert, a Longboat resident who requested anonymity, contacted several stakeholders in March about parking permit misuse, including the police, City Councillor Ausma Malik, MPP Chris Glover and Graywood Developments.
“It’s not unusual to see a tradesperson with a legally acquired permit even though they are doing physically demanding work. I know that seems illogical but I’m neither a doctor nor do I make the rules,” one police officer emailed.
Robert said Graywood Developments, which is building The Goode Condos at 37 Parliament Street, told him they would remind contracted tradespeople in the area to use parking lots. Graywood also told him the offending workers could have been hired by Lanterra Developments, which owns the nearby 31 Parliament Condominiums.
“Graywood has proactively reached out to the trade contractors on the Graywood site and advised them they are prohibited from parking [in Longboat] …we can appreciate that this is a frustrating matter, however, Graywood cannot control the use or misuse of Handicap Accessible Permits,” the developer said in an email. Lanterra did not reply to the bridge’s messages by the time of publication.
In 2017, former city councillor Joe Mihevic unsuccessfully introduced a motion to adopt a double-tiered permit system, stating Toronto is “vulnerable to fraudulent behaviour and the abuse of its accessible permit program.”
A two-tiered system would require those with disabilities to apply for both a provincial and a city-specific permit, with the latter allowing permit holders to use both designated handicapped spaces and free street parking.
Years ago, Wylie said he was part of a group that urged the Police Service Board to submit recommendations on accessible parking to City Council. While their efforts failed, one recommendation was for a wallet identity card that the province would issue along with the permit. He said a photographic reference would make it easier for parking enforcement to investigate misuse, but displaying peoples’ pictures on dashboard permits would raise privacy concerns.
Councillor Malik did not respond to the bridge’s emails.
